A lifelong Catholic serving up cafeteria food for thought whenever the spirit moves me. Grab a tray and come through the line. This cafeteria is definitely OPEN!

Monday, May 30, 2005

Remembering Memorial Day

As this three-day holiday weekend draws to a close, I'm taking a break from the sun and fun of this "unofficial start of Summer" to reflect on the meaning of this very special holiday.

As I sit here and blog on about religion, I am so grateful that I am free to do such a thing. And, I know that freedom isn't free. It comes for a price that has been paid by members of our armed services, especially those who gave their lives for that freedom. To their friends and loved ones, I say thank you. To their departed souls, I pray a prayer of gratitude.

To learn more about the history and traditions of Memorial Day, check out USMemorialDay.org. The site claims the holiday has lost its meaning since it became a three-day weekend in 1971, and I concur. To counter that, there's an effort underway to restore the traditional observance of Memorial Day to May 30th, instead of the "last Monday in May."

The Memorial Day site includes poems and prayers to mark the day. Remember Me, by Jimmie Barlow, reminds us to never forget:

Remember me as your sonwhen you used to doctor my bumpsremember me playing in the dirtremember me crying when i would get hurtremember walking to get my diplomaremember arguing and saying I'm gonnaremember me as a man doing my jobremember me , and please don't sob.I did what I had to do no matter whatI was heavily trained and I foughtno regrets as I am in a wonderful placeRemember me when you look at my purple heart in your glass case.

0 Comments:

About Me

I'm a 40-something lifelong Catholic who has accepted my lot as a Cafeteria Catholic. There is so much about the Catholic Church that truly speaks to me. And, yes, I have my points of disagreement. I find comfort in knowing most American Catholics feel the same way. This is one really BIG cafeteria!